Finland-headed oil refiner and renewable products major Neste Oyj and Germany-headed Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG, part of UK-headed Rolls-Royce Holdings plc, have announced an agreement to build a strategic partnership on accelerating the use of renewable diesel as a lower-emission solution for diesel engines.
According to a statement, both parties share a “common vision of renewable fuels playing a key role in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in off-highway applications, such as construction and power generation.”
The key focus in the collaboration will be on promoting the use of more sustainable fuels in applications based on the existing internal combustion engine (ICE) technology, accelerating the transition from fossil fuels to renewable fuels, and increasing knowledge sharing on renewable diesel and the benefits it provides to its users.
Through our ‘Net Zero at Power Systems’ sustainability program, we have committed to realigning our mtu product portfolio so that by 2030, sustainable fuels and new mtu technologies will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent compared to 2019. This near-term target plays an important role in the Rolls-Royce Group’s Net Zero ambition by 2050 at the latest, said Tobias Ostermaier, President, Stationary Power Solutions at Rolls-Royce Power Systems.
Under the mtu brand, Rolls-Royce markets high-speed engines and propulsion systems for ships, power generation, heavy land, and rail vehicles, military vehicles, and the oil and gas industry, as well as diesel and gas systems and battery containers for safety-critical applications, continuous power generation, combined heat and power, and microgrids.
Our collaboration with Neste, the world’s leading producer of renewable diesel, will help us achieve our goals and those of our customers, Tobias Ostermaier said.
“Neste MY Renewable Diesel” is produced from 100 percent renewable raw materials. It is a drop-in fuel, not requiring any modifications to the existing vehicles, energy systems, or fuel distribution infrastructures.
With Neste MY Renewable Diesel the GHG emissions can be reduced by as much as 75-95 percent (when emissions over the fuel’s life cycle are compared with fossil diesel. Companies can reduce their climate emissions significantly in an instant by just changing the fuel,’ said Lars Peter Lindfors, SVP Innovations at Neste.
Rolls-Royce is gradually releasing its main mtu engine series for more sustainable fuels such as renewable diesel, also known as HVO or HVO100, and e-diesel also in other applications such as rail, marine, and the construction industry.
Since May 2022, Rolls-Royce has approved mtu engines for power generation for renewable diesel and other fuels meeting the EN15940 standard specifications. The tests we have done show additionally an up to 90 percent greenhouse gas reduction, up to 80 percent less particulate emissions, and an average of 8 percent nitrogen oxides reduction. All our tests confirmed full performance levels without modifications to the engines, outlined Michael Stipa, VP of Stationary Strategy, Business Development, and Product Management at Rolls-Royce Power Systems.
Growing availability
Neste’s current production capacity for renewable products globally is at 3.3 million tonnes annually.
Neste’s ongoing production capacity project at its Singapore refinery and the joint venture with Marathon Petroleum Corp. in Martinez, California (CA), will increase the total production capacity of renewable products to 5.5 million tonnes by the end of 2023
This will make Neste the only global provider of renewable fuels and renewable feedstock for polymers and chemicals with a production footprint on three continents.
When completed, Neste’s Rotterdam refinery expansion project will further increase the company’s total production capacity of renewable products to 6.8 million tonnes by the end of 2026.
Both Neste and Rolls-Royce are aiming to reach their climate targets and to support the customers on their sustainability journey. Collaboration truly plays a key role when aiming for a significant sustainability impact, ended Mats Hultman, Head of OEM Partnerships at Neste.
